Can't access recov console due to Admin PW

[zer0ness]

Hello all.

My problems first started when I restarted and my computer said
C:/windows/system32/config/system is missing or corrupt and it wouldn't load
up. I Went to recovery console and renamed all of them to .bak and moved them
to a tmp folder, then I went to the repair folder and copied those to the
config folder. I Rebooted and got the "Your computer failed to start
successfully blah blah" and get safe mode, last good config (doesn't work)
and normal. I go to normal and get the win xp loading screen but after that
it just stays black. If I try any safe mode options, it stays hanging in
agp40.sys.

After that, I try going to recovery console again and my password isn't
recognized! It used to be blank and now it doesn't work. I tried the offline
nt password recover method but when it says it loads the SAM and Sofyware and
System, I go to edit them but then it gives me with "ERROR: SAM hive not
loaded!" or "Software hive not loaded and that is where recovery console
settings are..."

Now I'm stuck, my laptop won't load at all, and I can't access the recovery
console! I heard that this problem might be fixed in an SP1 version, but I
only have a regular windows xp recovery console cd, is that the problem? If I
slipstream sp1+ to it will it be fixed? I found the XP home SP2 boot disks
but my laptop doesn't have a floppy drive... so I'm stuck! Someone please
help. Thank you!

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Hello all.

My problems first started when I restarted and my computer said
C:/windows/system32/config/system is missing or corrupt and it wouldn't load
up. I Went to recovery console and renamed all of them to .bak and moved them
to a tmp folder, then I went to the repair folder and copied those to the
config folder. I Rebooted and got the "Your computer failed to start
successfully blah blah" and get safe mode, last good config (doesn't work)
and normal. I go to normal and get the win xp loading screen but after that
it just stays black. If I try any safe mode options, it stays hanging in
agp40.sys.

After that, I try going to recovery console again and my password isn't
recognized! It used to be blank and now it doesn't work. I tried the offline
nt password recover method but when it says it loads the SAM and Sofyware and
System, I go to edit them but then it gives me with "ERROR: SAM hive not
loaded!" or "Software hive not loaded and that is where recovery console
settings are..."

Now I'm stuck, my laptop won't load at all, and I can't access the recovery
console! I heard that this problem might be fixed in an SP1 version, but I
only have a regular windows xp recovery console cd, is that the problem?

I've never heard of any such thing as a "recovery console CD." Where
did this come from? Anyway, you'll need a full installation CD, at this
point.

If I
slipstream sp1+ to it will it be fixed? I found the XP home SP2 boot disks
but my laptop doesn't have a floppy drive... so I'm stuck! Someone please
help. Thank you!

At this point, about all you can do is perform a repair installation.
Doing so should preserve most of your settings, applications, and data.

How to Perform an In-Place Upgrade of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=KB;EN-US;Q315341

How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot

 

[Bob Harris]

If you have a real XP CD (not a vendor's resoration CD), then the recovery
console should be part of it.

And, yes, if you slipstream SP-1 with the original XP CD, the resultant CD
will run the SP-1 version of the recovery console. Ditto for SP-2 or 3.

As for whether that will ultimately lead to a fix for your problem, I can
not say.

If you do not want to manually do the slipstreaming, try
http://www.nliteos.com/ for a small program to do most of the work for you.
While nLite was created to make reduced/lite versions of XP, it can also be
used to keep everything and add changes due to a service pack. Read the
on-line guide, or better, print it to paper. Note that you do NOT need to
incorporate any monthly updates for your purpose. Further, since service
packs are cummulative, you could merge SP-2 or SP-3 with the original XP CD,
instead of SP-1. Further, if you do eventually need to perform a repair or
a clean install, ujsing the latest SP might be advantageous.

 

[Bob Harris]

Another thought or two: If you desire to access the recovery console is to
copy/move/rename files, then consider the alternative of booting on a "live"
LINUX CD, such as KNOPPIX. "Live" means that it runs from the CD, without
installing on your hard drive. Many recent LINUX variations can read AND
write to NTFS partitions, which is the default with XP. However, they
probably will not work if a file system is encrypted via XP.

The KNOPPIX bootable CD image is free from:
http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/index-en.html
It is a large download, since it also includes many applications, besides
just an operating system. It is also avialable as a DVD image, which is
even larger than the CD image, and includes even more applications. Either
version of KNOPPIX will handle USB and firewire external drives, just in
case you need to "rescue" personal files before reinstalling XP. By
default, for user safety, KNOPPIX will not write to internal hard drives.
It treats them as read-only file systems. You can manually change that via
a right-click. Additional documentation for KNOPPIX can be found at:
http://www.knoppix.net/wiki/Main_Page

HINTS: When booting into KNOPPIX, let it decide about hardware detection,
drivers, etc. It is usually 99+% correct about auto-detection, although it
does also have a number of options for users to control things. If it
prompts you for info, the first time try just hitting return, or if it has a
timer with a default, let it count-down and take the default. Only if the
easy way fails to boot into a desktop should you attempt to manually set
options.

Other "live" LINUX variations can be found at:
http://www.frozentech.com/content/livecd.php
Note that the smaller ones may not be as friendly and/or will not handle
NTFS file systems.

Another alternative is a Windows PE CD. This is a self-contained version of
windows (XP or Vista) that runs a more-or-less normal windows desktop
environment, has a version of windows explorer, and has fewer limitations
than the recovery console. The XP version of this CD was only made
available to IT professionals, but occassionally you can find a copy on the
web. The Vista version is supposed to be available to everyone, directly
from Microsoft. Do a Google search on "windows pe" for more info (with the
quotes). You might also want to try a torrent search on the same (without
the quotes).

A "Bart's PE CD" is similar to a windows PE CD, but you have to work a bit
to make it from an existing XP installation. A Bart's CD made on one
machine might work on another. It is well worth having a Bart's CD, and I
suggset that you make one after your PC is fixed, if not sooner.
http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/

Finally, back to the XP recovery console. It can be run form an real XP CD.
It does not need to be the one used to install your operating system. Thus,
if you have a friend with a SP-1 or 2 CD, you can use it to run the recovery
console. WARNING: Do not attempt to do a "repair" installation of XP with
any CD but your own, or a slip-streamed version thereof, or you will run
into activation problems. Ditto for a clean install.